I'd been wanting to try out a boxy zippered pouch [A Pattern Review]

I have a few weeks off from the holiday craziness and classwork so I have pulled out my list of projects and tutorials I want to try.  Today, I wanted to try a boxy zippered pouch.  I've seen them but couldn't quite grasp how to put it all together.  I found this tutorial by Drago[knit]fly for a Box Bag and her pictures were very helpful for me to be able to visualize how to assemble it. 

I will say that if you are one who is comfortable with sewing, then this tutorial will be easy enough for you to follow and adjust to fit your needs.  It might be a bit complicated for the newbie as her instructions aren't super detailed.  Again, her pictures pick up the slack though, so don't be afraid to tackle it!  My only 'ugh' with the project is that the interior raw edges can be seen when you look inside the bag, however, I know she did this to help make the bag easy to whip up in 30 minutes or less!  I'm certain that with a few tweaks I can remedy this, but I'm going to have to play around with it a bit.  I like the inside to look as pretty as the outside. 

My box bag ended up being just that: a box, or square.  It will be perfect for my camera, actually! Love that!  I can see already that I'm going to want another one (rectangular, this time) for traveling.  I never have anything to throw my brushes in.  All in all, a fun little tute and a really cute bag!!

If you have a tutorial or pattern you'd like me to review or test, please email me at sewsimplycreative [at] gmail [dot] com. 

This year's sew.simply.creative Teacher Gifts

This year, time is an issue for me.  Additionally, I have more teachers to make gifts for this year as well.  Not a good combination for me, ha!  Thankfully, I have some Key Fobs (tutorial can be found HERE) in my stash that I can use for small gifts, so I paired them with an ornament that my son selected from JoAnn's (60% off right now!!).  Such a clever and creative little gift! Love it!

My other son's 1st grade teacher is really dear to me, so I wanted to do something a bit more thoughtful for her.  Last evening I whipped up a wristlet/zippered pouch for her.  Usually I pipe the edges and add an applique of some sort, but again, time is an issue for me.  I've been wanting to make a zippered pouch with some depth to it for awhile now, so I decided to try that out for her gift.  Pulling from my stash, I selected a fabulous Amy Butler Nigella home decor weight print and found a coordinating quilter's weight cotton for the lining.

This was really easy (if you know the basics of constructing a zippered pouch):  I used 8" x 8.5" rectangles for my fabric pieces and inserted a 7" zipper.  Using strips of 1.75" wide fabric for the wristlet straps, I folded them twice, top-stitched them and added a lobster clasp and O-ring.  Done! And super cute!  I'll be making more, I'm sure.  I mean, really, who can't use a zippered pouch??? They are the perfect gift any time of  year.

If you'd like more specific instructions for this pouch, please comment or email me, and I'll consider a tutorial for this!

So, lastly, what have YOU made for teacher gifts this year? If you still need some simply creative ideas, check out my tutorials over in the right sidebar.

Merry Christmas!